Agreement signed for collaboration in teaching, research

Rawalpindi : A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between Rawalpindi Medical University and University of York, UK for collaboration between the two universities in teaching, training, service delivery and research at different levels.

Dr Najma Siddiqi, a Clinical Senior Lecturer in the Mental Health and Addictions Research Group (MHARG), Department of Health Sciences, University of York, UK along with a Clinical Nurse Specialist Jerome Wright who lectures across undergraduate and post-graduate nursing and public health courses in a range of subject areas at York signed the MoU and held discussion with the RMU officials on planning of research between the two institutions.

Professor Fareed Aslam Minhas, Member Syndicate and Co-Chairman of Board of Advanced Studies & Research at RMU informed ‘The News’ that the planned research will improve healthcare in the field of mental and physical multimorbidity.

National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Global Health Research Group on Improving Outcomes in Mental and Physical Multimorbidity and Developing Research Capacity (IMPACT) in South Asia at the University of York is a collaboration of academic, non-governmental and policy organizations in the UK, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan that have come together to develop research on mental and physical health comorbidity. The ‘IMPACT in South Asia Group’ will generate new knowledge and build research capacity to develop, evaluate and sustainably implement evidence-based interventions for mental and physical multimorbidity, said Professor Minhas.

He said the proposed programme focuses on one of the world’s most vulnerable populations, people with mental illness in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) and targets a major cause of global disease burden and health inequalities in South Asia.

IMPACT in South Asia Group is led by University of York and other partners include Hull School of Medicine, UK University of Leeds, UK University of Sussex, UK University of Dundee, UK University of Southampton, UK Kings College of London, UK The London School of Economics and Political Science, UK World health Organization, Ark Foundation, Bangladesh International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh National institute of Mental Health-Neuro Science, India Institute of Psychiatry and Rawalpindi Medical University, Pakistan.

Dr. Minhas said the Group’s long-term objectives, aligned with global and country priorities for Bangladesh, India and Pakistan are to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with physical illness in people with Serious Mental Illness and to reduce depression or anxiety in people with chronic physical conditions.